Port city traders bear brunt of narrow passage

CHATTOGRAM, Aug 08: The under-construction sluice gate on Chaktai Canal has turned out to be bane, not boon for the port city traders.
Importers, exporters and wholesalers of essentials in Chaktai, Khatunganj and Assadganj areas have been suffering financially since temporary opening of a portion of the under-construction sluice gate on Chaktai Canal earlier this year.
Their sufferings have been mainly caused by the design of the sluice gate, sources said. They said the size of the entire sluice gate is small. Trawlers and goods-carrying large boats cannot move through the newly-opened portion of the sluice gate.
The Chattogram Development Authority (CDA) has been implementing the sluice gate construction project aiming to rid the city-dwellers of waterlogging, a perennial problem in the port city.
Traders said the cost of carrying goods through Chaktai Canal has increased by 8-10 per cent now following partly opening of the under-construction sluice gate as large country boats and trawlers loaded with essentials cannot enter Chaktai through the narrow passage of the sluice gate.
Sources said, in 2018, the CDA kicked off construction of the sluice gate in Chaktai Bridge area near Chaktai Canal's confluence with the river Karnaphuli. The CDA opened a part of the sluice gate near the Chaktai Bridge recently.
Sources said importers and wholesalers used to supply imported essential items to other parts of the country from Chaktai, Khatunganj and Assadganj using Chaktai Canal as a vital inland maritime route. As the sluice gate is narrow, carrying of essentials by watercraft through the canal is hampered and the traders are compelled to opt for a longer maritime route abandoning this one.
Now, the traders are unloading their goods near the Karnaphuli mouth area which is causing delay in supplying the imported items to different destinations in the country as well as a notable increase in the goods' transportation cost.
Omar Azam, General Secretary of Chattogram Rice Traders Association, said the traders were transporting essentials through the Chaktai Canal for centuries. But they cannot do the same now due to the narrow passage of the sluice gate, he said.
"Earlier, we had requested the CDA to save us from the city's waterlogging problem. Following the demand, the CDA constructed the sluice gate and now a small part of it has been opened obstructing entry of goods-laden large boats into the canal. Under these circumstances, we are forced to unload our goods at the river mouth. The goods carrying cost has increased 8-10 per cent now," he added.
Mohammed Rafique Ullah, General Secretary of Chattogram Rice Mills Association, said, "We used to carry rice to Cox's Bazar and other districts through Chaktai Canal. But presently, big boats cannot enter the canal. Rice and other essentials are being supplied to other areas and districts through the alternative route from Chaktai, Khatunganj and Assadganj."

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